Review - If I Stay by Gayle Forman

So this book... wow. It took me a a while to read because I've literally had no time lately and that's why I haven't posted in a while so, sorry about that. 

 The storyline of this book (if you didn't already know) is about a girl (Mia) who gets into a car crash and as a results goes into a coma. But, she is able to see things going on around her. I loved that you could still see her perspective on things even though she's not there. 

The writing was so great and it felt like I was actually Mia and living (well, not living exactly but...)  her life. 

The flashback sections were amazing and I loved how you got to see her life before the accident so that it explained what happened after and what people had said to her whilst she was in the coma.

The only downside to this book is that not much happened. there weren't any massive events apart from the crash so if  you're looking for something action packed, this isn't for you. If you're only just starting reading again or have a book hangover, this is perfect as it's not too long either. 

It was so cute and yes, I will admit, I did cry at one part. I give this book 3.5 stars.

*** SPOILER SECTION **

Okay so Kim is the sweetest person in this book and I feel like I could relate to her the most with her rambling. And I also just want her as a friend.

Adam kinda annoyed me with the whole 'don't go to Julliard' vibe that he was giving off and I just wanted her to wake up and be like 'I'm going', get up off of that bed and go straight there. But of course that didn't happen....

I did like the fact that the her relatives made her feel at ease and thought it was quite realistic in that sense (not that I know what a coma's like). But I am glad that she chose to stay, although it was quite a predictable ending. 

Overall a really cute and interesting read 

Review - Half Wild by Sally Green

Another review!!! Half Wild was such a great 2nd book in this trilogy, you'd usually expect the 2nd book to be a let down but this was so action packed that I wasn't bored at all! 

Admittedly, it did take a while for things to pick up but once it did, it was great!  

If you haven't read Half Bad, the first book in the series I highly suggest that you do because that's equally amazing, if not better. And I just don't know why you haven't read it yet... Do it... NOW. 

The cliffhanger that this is left on makes me want the 3rd book like right now. 

If you are a fan of witchy books or distopian books, this is for you! I give the book 4 stars :) 

***SPOILER SECTION***

GABRIEL. NATHAN. NABRIEL? GATHAN? EIther way I just wanted them to be together because in my head, that idea is the cutest thing ever and so much better than Annalise. 

She actually annoys me if I'm completely honest, through out the last 100 pages she was just so negative I couldn't deal with her. 

The small glimpses of bonding between Nathan and Marcus were so amazing and it gave me a real sense of family, like they had been close for the whole book. 

Van and Nesbitt were the funniest characters and I felt like Nesbitt and I would get on so well! It also seemed that Nathan was slowly accepting them as his family in the book and I liked that idea. 

ALSO, THE STUPID PROPHECY. 

Why, why did Marcus have to die. THAT'S ALL THE FAMILY HE HAS THAT DON'T HATE HIM. At the start of the book I was convinced that it wasn't going to be true and that I didn't want it to be true but it was and so many tears noooooooooo. 

Review - The Night We Said Yes by Lauren Gibaldi

(This review won't have a spoiler section because it's quite a short book and I don't want to spoil any of it)

This book is one of the cutest books I've ever read. It's a contemporary stand alone book and it's perfect for curing any book hangovers you may have.

It's set in the present day but has flash backs. The protgonist is called Ella and she meets Matt for the first time in the THEN sections of the book and in the NOW sections, it's where she see's him again. The events in the THEN chapters link to the NOW chapters and explain why thats happened in the NOW and you start to get the cute inside jokes.

This book has made me want to keep bracelets of each amazing day/night that I have because thats what Meg and Ella do in the book and I think it's such a cute idea.

OMG THIS BOOK WITHOUT THE DUST JACKET IS SO BEAUTIFUL YOU DON'T UNDERSTAND. So basically you need to buy it in hardback to get the full experience because I promise you, you wont regret it.

It's strangely relatable, everyone knows a couple which are so dysfunctional - that they just work together and you don't expect the two people to be with anyone else but eachother.

The only negative thing that I could think of was that the ending was quite cheesy but kind of a good cheesy? And the outcome of Ella seeing Matt (without spoiling) was predictable... BUT OTHER THAN THAT, AMAZING.

Overall I LOVED this book, all I wish is that there was a sequel so I could see more relationship development  (but that's just because I love it that much). You should definitley think about getting it in whatever form you wish because I'm so glad that I did.

I give this book 4 stars!

Review - Clockwork Princess by Cassandra Clare

Oh. My. God.

What a great end to a great trilogy. So many twists that made me both cry and laugh. 

Also, because I have read The Mortal Instruments before this series so many things were starting to make sense so if you haven't read TMI I'd recommend reading these first. 

Normally the third book in a trilogy is a let down but Cassandra Clare had gone against that because there are so many things that happen that you wish for in the second book. 

You find out so much more depth in this book and the turn of events lead me satisfied with the ending - it makes me so happy 

I give this 5 stars 

*** AND NOW FOR THE VERY SPOILERY SECTION SO PLEASE DO NOT READ IT IF YOU DONT WANT TO BE SPOILED ***

What an adventure. Magnus in this book took a journey himself and we get to see his caring side. From when he assists Will, when he helps Henry with the portal, and when he comforts Tessa after the loss of Will. I love this side of Magnus (eventhough I am a lover of his sassy side) 

Tessa. So many times throughout the  book I kept feeling like Mortmain was going to win and he was going to get her. But I'm so glad that he didn't and I'm also very happy that Tessa got to love both Will and Jem and experience two different lives within the book. The development that Tessa went through in this is amazing! When she changes into the Angel, her bravery was refreshing and something I'd never seen before. Go Tessa! 

Jem. You were responsible for most of my tears. First you use up the drug trying to please Tessa. Then, you have us think that you die but you come back during the battle and a silent brother - BROTHER ZACARIAH - and then you become mortal again. Too many feels James Castairs

Will. YAYAYAYAYAYAYAY! He gets Tessa in the end. The part where he finds Tessa and they're together just made me want to jump up and down, it really did. And they have children. And Jem plays to him before he dies and I was just so happy for him and all the developments in relationships. 

Jessamine. I was so sad when she does and thought that we would never see her again but the part when she comes back and tells Will to propose was amazing and I loved it. 

BYE MORTMAIN. The part that made me want to stab him was when he made Tessa change into his father just.... UUGGGGHH. But the infernal devices failed and all is well now 

SOPHIE AND GIDEON

CECILY AND GABRIEL

CHARLOTTE AS CONSUL 

BABY FAIRCHILDS AND ALL THE OTHER SHADOW HUNTERS

YAY FOR ALL

Book purchases

Hi guys!

So I haven't finished Clockwork Princess yet I'm only 173 pages in because I've just been so busy. However, I visited waterstones today and picked up some new books (I really shouldn't have sorry bank account) that I thought I'd share with you

First book - The Lie Tree by Frances Hardinge

I saw the book one of the stands around the shop and the tag line at the top caught me right away. 'There's no such things as a little white lie'. So I read to blurb and needed to buy it! This book has also been named Costa's book of the year for 2015 so if it's good enough for Costa, it's good enough for me. 

Second book - Throne of Glass by Sarah J Mass

I've wanted this book for ages now because Sasha (abookutopia) and Ben (benjaminoftomes) two of my favourite book tubers have reviewed it and loved it so I thought that I'd give it ago. 

Onto the TBR pile they go 

X

Clockwork Prince by Cassandra Clare

Hey guys!

So I've finished Clockwork Prince, the second book in The Infernal Devices trillogy by Cassandra Clare and safe to say it was AMAZING. The writing was brilliant and Will Herondale is such a babe in this book!! (Along with Magnus who is so sassy I can't even). Also, I was not expecting the twist whatsoever and it's so shocking but so brilliant at the same time.

I was expecting a lot from this book given my love for Cassandra Clare and the quality of the first book and my expectations were met, if not exceeded. 

If you are a fan of distopian worlds such as the hunger games or the divergent series you will love this series and if you've read The Mortal Insteuments and haven't read this series what are you doing. 

I give this book a 4 out of five stars and will be reading Clockwork Princess next, I've heard it's heartbreaking and I'm so scared but excited at the same time!

***FROM NOW ON THIS MAY CONTAIN SPOILERS***

NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO WHYYYYYYYYYYYY

So this is now the spoiler section so if haven't read the book Don't not read this section - even though they're subtle spoilers I don't want to ruin anyone's experience of this book.

My 4 out of 5 star rating did not reach the full 5 stars because of the ending. SHE MADE THE WRONG CHOICE!! Will is so hillarious and charming (obviously I mean, he is a Herondale) why wouldn't you choose him?! Stupid! Also, Will's obsession with Demin Pox is hillarious. 

However, I do love Magnus in this book and I feel like he is more of himself in this book than the first in the series.

JESSAMINE WHY

Charlotte and Henry at the end of this book makes me really happy, the whole way through this book I was rooting for them to be happy and they finally were.  

Jem. So, Jem, at the start of the book I thought he was going to end up with Sophie but nooooooooooooo things can't go like that because we're expecting it. I do like who he ends up with though. 

Tessa... YOU MADE THE WRONG CHOICE

And Sophie, even though she is not with Jem, her relationship developments are very very very exciting!!!

 

I hope you enjoyed this review, let me know if there's anything else you want to know or discuss :)

X

Reading slump!

Hi guys!

So it seems I've hit a reading slump... And it's bad. So bad that I don't feel like in getting anywhere in the night circus so, I've decided to change book to...... CLOCKWORK PRINCE BY CASSANDRA CLARE!!!!

Some of you might know, Cassandra Clare is my all time favourite author and I'm hoping her words of wisdom and imagination can pull me out of this reading slump. Sorry this was a short post, just wanted to keep you updated. WISH ME LUCK!

x

A Fresh Start

Hi guys!

I've been away for ages and I'm so so sorry, I just didn't feel like I had anything valuable to post. So now, I'm giving myself a theme. This blog is now going to be purely (or mostly) book related. As you may or may not know, I'm a lover of books and have my favorites and, of course, my least favorites and I'd love to share each any every one of them with you. I'm sorry if this sudden content change is not for you, it's just what I want to post and what I can be happy about posting.

I plan to write a whole load of reviews and you guys and follow my reading journeys both on here, and on goodreads.com with this link https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/31839975-alisha . I'm currently reading The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern and so far, it's amazing and I can't wait to see where it goes.

I hope you'll enjoy future posts and see you all soon!

x

Heroines

On September 11th I was lucky enough to watch the panel at Cheltenham Literature festival called 'How to be a heroine' and on featured the panel were: Carrie Hope Fletcher, Anna James and Samantha Ellis - all brilliant authors and people. During this panel feminismand heroines were disussed at great lengths and it was enjoyable to watch and to gain an insight as to what makes a heroine a heroine. After this panel my friend and I waited outside for Carrie to come out before her signing.

Some of you may know that Carrie, to me, is the person I look up to most in life. She inspired me to start writing again and to want to do Musical Theatre at uni because she's so happy and inspiring for everyone. (And I'd love to be eponine)

So after Carrie came out I got a hug and a photo and she was so lovely. It wasn't one of those moments where your expectations of your idol or role model aren't met, it was quite the opposite. We talked about Les Mis and how I had pre-ordered the christmas edition of All I Know Now (so so so excited) and overall she was just a a lovely human being!

But back to heroines, you can have both non-fictional and fictional heroines and we all have them! My fictional heroine is currently Clary Fray and my non-fictional heroine is Carrie (and the fact that I can now say that I've met her is amazing). Who's yours?

xx